TTFF NEWS - Final U17 squad selected for qualifiers in Mexico

Final U17 squad selected for qualifiers in Mexico

 

Trinidad and Tobago National Under 17 Football Team head coach Anton Corneal on Monday selected a final 20-man squad to contest the CONCACAF Final Round of qualification for the 2009 FIFA Under 17 World Championship.

The squad will arrive in Tijuana, Mexico on Monday where it will begin its final round campaign against hosts Mexico on April 22 at the 33,000-capacity Estadio Caliente. They then take on Costa Rica on April 24 and Guatemala two days later

The top two teams from each group will advance to the World Championship in Nigeria from October 24 to November 15, 2009. The other group being contested also in Mexico includes USA, Honduras, Canada and Cuba.

T&T are coming off two back to back wins,  a 3-2 win over local Pro League outfit Mau Pau FC and then another, a 2-1 win over the National Under 20 team on Monday with both goals coming from forward Jerrel Britto.

 

Corneal, having led the previous Under 17 team to a spot at the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Championship in South Korea, is optimistic of his team’s chances.

 

“I think right now the squad is in the best shape possible. We had some difficulty in the last few weeks deciding on a final squad because of how much the players were pushing themselves. We have 25 players all capable of making it but unfortunately we can only take 20 to the tournament,” Corneal told TTFF Media on Tuesday.

 

“The team has grown in every department, physically, tactically and confidence wise. We have a couple of good tours under our belt and we’ve done pretty well against a couple local pro league teams. We’ve had one or two senior players really stepping up and hopefully this continues in the tournament.

 

“We know the history of Mexico and Costa Rica. They have both qualified for previous tournaments but Mexico didn’t make it last time and we know they will not make it easy for any team especially being at home this time. But we are prepared for the challenge. I think that with the right attitude and approach we can make it through,” Corneal added.

 

“Because of having played the likes of a Brazil National Under 17 teams as well as the teams we encountered in Colombia, we know what we will be up against in Mexico in terms of style of play. We are in pretty much excellent shape physically and this is good for us when a team has to play three matches inside six days.”

 

Corneal said his players are motivated by the fact that the previous U17s made it through and that the U20s have followed in similar fashion by making it to Egypt 2009.

 

“Yes they are definitely using it as an incentive. They have been told all year round that this opportunity comes only once at the U17 level and they have seen what qualifying for a World Cup does for players. The right examples have been set for these boys and they are eager to try and grab the opportunity ahead of them,” Corneal concluded.

 

The team will train at 4pm on Wednesday at the Marvin Lee Stadium before departing for Panama City on Thursday where they will play a warm up match a day later.

 

 

NATIONAL U-17 FOOTBALL SQUAD FOR MEXICO 2009

 

NAME	D-O-B	CLUB	SCHOOL
GOALKEEPERS
1.John Thomas	18-11-1993	Joe Public	Fatima College
2.Jamal Francois	16-09-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St. Anthony’s College
DEFENDERS
3.Akeems Grant	07-04-1992	W Connection	Naparima College
4.Reshad Wint	12-02-1992	Joe Public	St. Anthony’s College
5.Dwight Ceballo	06-06-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St. Anthony’s College
6.Dillon Kirton	25-04-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St. Mary’s College
7.Zavion Navarro	31-12-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St, Augustine Senior Comp.
8.Luke Hernandez	24-03-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St. Anthony’s College
9.Shaquille Stewart	10-11-1993	W Connection	St. Benedict’s College
10.Omarr Charles	12-03-1992	Stokelyvale F.C.	Mason Hall High School
MIDFIELDERS
11.Shahdon Winchester	08-01-1992	W Connection	Naparima College
12.Ryan Mcleod	02-02-1992	Toronto FC Academy	The Woodlands School, Canada
13.Vernell Ramirez	19-03-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St, Augustine Senior Comp.
14.Neil Mitchell	01-07-1992	Joe Public	El Dorado Secondary
15.Moriba Ballah	03-01-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St. Anthony’s College
16.Ross Russell Jr.	09-01-1992	Defence Force	Fatima College
17.Ryan Frederick	11-06-1992	W Connection	Naparima College
FORWARDS
18.Cordel Cato	15-07-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	St. Anthony’s College
19.Jerrel Britto	04-07-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	Queen’s Royal College
20.Johan Peltier	26-03-1992	San Juan Jabloteh	Mucurapo Senior Comp.

 

 

 

 

Staff

 

Boris Punch- Chef de Mission

Anton Corneal – Head Coach

Christopher Gouveia - Manager

Michael McComie – Ass’t Coach

Shawn Cooper- Ass’t Coach

Ross Russell- Goalkeeper Coach

Mario John- Doctor

Michael Taylor- Physio

Gilbert Bateau- Trainer

Mark Lewis- Equipment Manager

 

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